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If you’ve read any of my rabbit blog posts or you are a rabbit owner, you will know that for rabbits, eating poo is an essential behaviour to keep their digestive system healthy.

However, when it happens in dogs (when they eat their own or other dog’s poo) it becomes something that we find disgusting and difficult to understand. Sadly, dog poo eating is a reason for dogs to be rehomed and even euthanised.

As you can see, there are many theories out there. Interestingly, for 15 years I worked for a pet food company who believe that a diet based on whole grains, with reduced levels of protein and fat, can stop coprophagia. This company produces high-quality diets which have undoubtedly helped reduce skin and digestive problems in some dogs, unfortunately, though, the coprophagia claim is not something I found to be true. I don’t know if they now have any data to support this claim.

Does changing their diet help?

Sadly my own dog eats poo. I don’t believe diet has anything to do with it as I have tried him on:

High fibre diets

Diets high in whole grains, low fat, low fibre, low protein

Low carbohydrate, high fat, high protein diets

Novel protein diets

Grain-free diets

Wet food diets

Raw food diets

None of these diet options (or increasing or decreasing the amount he ate) made any difference to his poo-eating habit.

Even solving his previous digestive problem has not stopped him from poo-eating. However, I wonder if a digestive problem is what started the poo eating in the first place. Currently, he is fed on a commercial raw food diet and his digestive system has never been better. He does small, solid poos now instead of large sloppy ones and he used to have frequent bouts of diarrhoea which he does not have any more.

Nutritional health and coprophagia

Late in 2016, his poo eating changed. He started to eat our other dog’s poo (which he has never done) and he was diagnosed with a Vitamin B12 deficiency. He had a few courses of B12 injections, we changed to a commercial raw food and he stopped eating our other dog’s poo. He still eats dog poo he finds on a walk, unless we keep an eye on him. I believe with him it is either an attention seeking behaviour (it is very hard not to react when he eats poo) or a habit which started as a result from previous digestive issues.

Interestingly, the results of a study presented in 2012 in America by Dr. Benjamin Hart (a board certified veterinary behaviourist from the University of California, Davis) which had over 1400 completed surveys also found that diet made no difference at all. And for all those people that say dry food or grains are the cause, this is not true. I’m aware that there are several raw fed dogs (including my own) that eat poo.

Is there a breed trait?

From personal experience (working on a pet health helpline for 15 years) I have found that the most common breed to do this is the greedier type of dog i.e. Labradors, Retrievers, Beagles and Cocker spaniels. Of course this does not mean if you own one of these breeds they will definitely eat poo and other breeds can develop this problem too.

Dr. Hart’s study also conducted that Border collies and Shelties were most likely to eat poo and Poodles were the least likely. Bitches are more likely than male dogs and dogs in multi-dog households are more likely to develop this issue.

So why do they do it?

The conclusion of many behaviourists is that this is actually a normal behaviour in dogs – after all bitches will clean up after their puppies to keep the ‘nest’ clean. There is no evidence to suggest that it is caused by a dietary deficiency but may be a throw back to when dogs were scavengers and food was scarce. I personally believe the cause is not the same for all dogs and there is no simple cure.

What can you do if your dog eats poo?

First of all, get your dog checked out at your vet for any medical issues. Make sure they are up to date with parasite treatment (as they can pick up worms and other bugs from faeces) and if possible try to restrict access to faeces as much as possible by removing it from your garden. Consider muzzling your dog when on a walk. Try to avoid reacting when they eat poo. Shouting at your dog is still attention, even though it is negative. Any type of punishment has been shown to make the issue worse (although at the moment I can’t find the reference for this). So try to ignore the bad and reward the good behaviour. If he/she sniffs a poop but doesn’t eat it make sure you go over the top with rewards by either offering a very tasty treat or playing a game. You may also wish to try a change in diet – it does work for some dogs but only occasionally in my experience. Try to increase mental stimulation as this will help to reduce boredom and anxiety. This involves things like puzzle games and scent work.

You are probably already aware that rabbits can be difficult to bond (introduce). Despite craving company of their own kind, they can be very fussy when it comes to who they are going to share their home with. I’m always saying to my husband that it’s probably a good thing they can be picky; if they were easy to introduce and got along with every bunny, then I’d have hundreds instead of just two.

We bond them because companionship prevents loneliness, boredom and stress. A partner rabbit can help with grooming, is someone to snuggle with for warmth and is there as support when they feel poorly or scared. For an owner, seeing a pair of rabbits cuddled up together or grooming each other is one of the best feelings.

But sometimes this bond can break. This might be because of illness or because of some stress or change to the partnership. For example, although building a group of rabbits sounds fantastic, if you are starting with a pair and adding more bunnies, there is always the chance that the original pairing may break down. Another example is an illness. I had a pair that had been together for 4-5 years. The older rabbit, Alice developed heart disease and was on medication for the condition. However, one morning I found her outside of the hutch and her partner George would not let her back inside (it was summer, and the hutch was always open and in a giant secure aviary). Alice had bite marks all over her where he had attacked her and kicked her out. She lived the rest of her life (a few months) as an indoor bunny. It seems cruel to us, but this sort of behaviour is quite common in the animal world. A weak, sick or elderly animal can attract predators and threatens the safety of the whole group, so they will often be ousted.

Another problem is vet visits. And this is the focus of this blog.

I have always advised taking bonded pairs to the vets together. They should always travel together as it is less scary for the rabbits. If your rabbit needs to stay at the vet for a procedure or operation, then it is even more important to keep them together as they can support each other.

Dobby & Hazel at the vet together

When Dobby stopped eating in the summer (see my previous blog), I took both he and Hazel to the vets on the first day. I was able to bring them home overnight and continued to give him medication and food via syringe, but the next day he was no better, so I had to take him back. This is where I made a huge mistake. Hazel did not want to go back in the carrier and was running around and around getting stressed. She then hid in a tube and refused to come out. Instead of waiting for her or encouraging her out (I was getting a bit stressed myself) I decided I would take Dobby to the vets on his own as I needed to get there as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, he was then admitted to the veterinary hospital because he was not improving. The next day I asked if I could bring Hazel in to be with him, but because he was not eating, drinking or pooing by himself, they said at this stage it would be easier to monitor him if he stayed on his own. In the end, he was in the vet hospital for about four days.

When he came home

About a week after Dobby came home, when I knew he was eating properly, I tried to introduce him back to Hazel on neutral territory. He must have smelled very odd to poor Hazel; he was also lop-eared as his ears had dropped due to having catheters in them. He may even have still smelled ‘sick’ to her, but whatever it was she did not like him and she was aggressive towards him. He retaliated, and within a split second, they were having a proper fight. I separated them as quickly as possible but it wasn’t quick enough, and poor Hazel had two huge bite wounds in her side. It was straight off to the emergency vets to get them stitched up.

A customised baby grow was used to stop Hazel chewing her stitches

Hazel’s stitches

I was mortified. They had such a close bond before this, and I was so angry that I hadn’t followed my own advice. This would not have happened if Hazel had gone to stay at the vet with Dobby.

Mending the bond

I left Dobby and Hazel apart for six weeks. I had a spare hutch, and I swapped them around. So they would spend a day or two in the shed, then the hutch then back in the shed. I swapped litter trays on the days in between. I let them out into the garden one at a time so they could see each other through the mesh of the run. Initially, they tried to bite each other through the run, but this settled down.

Eventually, it was now or never. I decided to have one more go at bonding. I popped them both into their carrier (carriers are usually too small a space to fight) and took them for a short drive in the car. This may not seem ethical to some people as it is a technique known as ‘stressing’ and is used to encourage the rabbits to snuggle together, however in this instance I thought it was necessary and would be worth it in the end.

I used my front porch as neutral territory (space where neither rabbit had been) and to start with I used a partition, which was removed after about 15 minutes when I could see they were doing okay. I also had big welder gloves ready in case I needed to separate them – I was scratched the last time.

The body language was much different to before. Hazel was understandably very nervous and kept lunging at Dobby when he went near, but this settled down. After about 30 minutes my wonderful husband brought me a chair to sit on and a cup of tea. About 2 hours went by before I left the porch. I decided they were okay on their own as I had seen them sitting together closely. Dobby and Hazel stayed in the porch for a couple of days (we used the back door to get in and out the house!) and in the meantime, I scrubbed the shed and run with a mix of white vinegar and water to neutralise smells. When I reintroduced them back into the shed, I stayed with them for a while to make sure they were okay, and things have been fine ever since.

I don’t know who coined the term ‘silent killer’ but it’s an unfortunately accurate description of this problem. It’s not being overly dramatic to state that gastric stasis can kill a rabbit in a matter of hours. Gastric stasis occurs when normal gut motility (movement) slows down or stops. It’s best to think of the rabbit digestive system like a conveyor belt, it must keep moving for them to survive. It stops moving if the rabbit stops eating and/or stops producing poo.

Gastric stasis (or GI stasis) is not a disease itself, it is a secondary problem that is caused by something else – such as pain, disease, digestive blockage or bloating, poor diet or stress. Feeding a diet which is deficient in long fibre particles (i.e. a diet high in dry food with not enough hay and grass) can slow down the digestive system. Fibre is also required to push fur that has been ingested when grooming through the system.

The problem is that the symptoms can be very subtle, and it doesn’t take long for the condition to escalate from serious to life threatening.

Back in the summer, one morning as usual, I went out to the shed to feed and check on my rabbits Dobby and Hazel. Instead of running to greet me (to check what food I had) Dobby just stayed sitting where he was and only Hazel ran forward. This immediately set off alarm bells with me. Dobby is incredibly greedy and this was not normal. I picked him up and checked him over, I couldn’t see anything wrong. I put him back down and instead of hopping around he just hunched himself back up into a ball again and looked very uncomfortable. I tried to get him to move a little and he did a bit of stretching but he just looked ‘off’. With another animal such as a dog or a cat, you might leave them a little while to see if they feel better later but with rabbits every minute counts. I’m lucky enough to work at a veterinary practice and was on my way to work, so I took them with me.

Dobby with his bandage where the intravenous catheter had been placed.

The short version of this story is that Dobby ended up being admitted to the specialist exotics veterinary hospital and was in there for 4 days. He was given painkillers, prebiotics and drugs to get his gut moving again (once he was checked for blockages). He had blood tests, urine tests and his teeth checked (as tooth pain can be one reason for refusing to eat). He was syringe fed and put on fluids as he was beginning to become dehydrated. After 4 days he started eating by himself and pooing properly again and was cleared to come back home. However, we are none the wiser regarding what started the problem, I just know that had I have left him he would have died. Both rabbits were moulting heavily, and I wondered if he had eaten too much fur when grooming but no blockage was found. The vets could find nothing wrong with him and his routine the night before had been normal, with no stress or routine change I can think of.

So, I guess the take home messages from this experience are:

If you think your rabbit isn’t quite themselves, acting slightly different, lethargic or not eating as much or pooing normally – get them to the vet immediately. You can’t afford to wait until the next day.

Get pet insurance! I am extremely grateful I have insurance for him as the whole episode was over £1000 and I only had to pay an excess of £55. Phew!

If you have a bonded pair of rabbits always take them to the vet together. I now have personal experience of what a disaster it can be if you don’t follow this advice. (see my next blog!).

PS. as a weird side note Dobby has ‘uppy’ ears and has never been a lop eared rabbit. When I went to pick him up from the vets I had to check they had given me the right rabbit as both his ears were hanging down! I think the weight of the IV catheters into his ears caused them to bend. It took about a month in total for them to fully right themselves!

Socialisation in dogs and cats

Socialisation is a term usually used to describe a period of learning (up to 14- 16 weeks old) that puppies go through. During this period they learn how to properly interact with other animals and humans as well as experiencing different situations, objects and environments. Dogs that have not been properly socialised during this period can grow up to be fearful, anxious and potentially aggressive. During this socialisation period there is also a fear imprint period (also known as a sensitive period) and any negative or scary experiences during this time can have a lasting effect on the puppy. Interestingly, the age of onset of this period is different between breeds, with Labradors not starting the fear imprint period until 72 days old compared to German Shepherds at 39 days old. This could explain differences between breeds and their ability to deal with new situations or environments when older.

A socialisation period has also been discovered in kittens but is thought to be between 2-7 weeks old. This means that the breeder or rescue centre will have the sole responsibility of ensuring the kitten is exposed to as many new stimuli as possible during this period to ensure they make friendly, confident pets before they go to their new home.

Socialisation in rabbits

What about rabbits? There is a wealth of information about puppies and socialisation, a little about cats and even less about rabbits, however if we are to try and prevent the large number of rabbits being given up to rescue centres this is something that we should be focusing on. A properly socialised baby rabbit, that is used to humans handling them is much more likely to go on to become a more relaxed and friendly pet. According to Dr. Dyles (2006) the socialisation period in rabbits is between 10-21 days old and to ensure baby bunnies grow into tame, friendly and confident adults they must be handled before they are 21 days old (but it is also important for handling to continue regularly after this age). This means that breeders (and rescue centre staff) have the responsibility of making sure the rabbits they sell or put up for adoption are accustomed to being picked up and handled. If you are considering getting a rabbit from a breeder this is something you should ask – how much handling have they had? Along with what are the temperaments of the parents? Are they placid, friendly parents? Ask to meet them to see for yourself.

Baby bunnies that have not been handled when young are more likely to fear humans and may grow into timid, frightened adults. This fear can escalate into aggression, especially if they learn that biting or lunging makes the scary thing (perhaps a human hand) go away. Behaviours like this are just one reason rabbits become neglected or given to a rescue centre. Preventing this scenario from happening in the first place is the best option.

Habituation in rabbits

If, however you already have an adult rabbit that is fearful or aggressive (which is usually due to fear) it is still possible that they may be taught to become less anxious. This is usually through the process habituation. Habituation occurs when the rabbit is exposed to the stimulus enough times that it eventually gets used to it and stops reacting. For example, with enough time and patience, a rabbit that shrinks away every time you put your hand towards may start to realise that nothing bad is going to happen and instead of shrinking away they may stay still, eventually they may even let you stroke them and finally may offer their head for stroking. For this to work, an owner must be patient and move slowly so as not to startle the rabbit. This process may take weeks, months or longer and all interactions should be made as positive as possible, using a tasty treat may help or you may find that speaking to them calmly and quietly helps. If you proceed too fast it could scare the rabbit and make matters worse.

If you have an aggressive rabbit the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund have a great leaflet called Biting the Hand that Feeds. However, if more people are made aware that rabbits, like dogs, also have a socialisation ‘window’ this may help to prevent behavioural problems later in life – resulting in happier rabbits and owners.

During the last few months of my rabbit George’s life he became very thin. Increasing the number of dry pellets often gave him an upset stomach and his partner bunny Hazel, who was younger would eat quicker, often eating a bigger share of the calorific food. This meant that maintaining a healthy body weight for George was difficult and consequently Hazel became quite overweight. Not only was she eating more but it was winter so she was less active (she digs a lot in the spring and summer) and because George was poorly and less active she tended to sit with him to keep him company. I resorted to hand feeding George to prevent her getting fatter.

Hazel had physically changed shape and was ‘rounder’ so I could see she was too heavy, however, once George passed away I could control Hazel’s diet to help her lose the weight she gained. If you want to check your own bunnies weight then check out the PFMA rabbit size-o-meter here. A rabbit is classed as being overweight if they carry 10-20% more body weight than they should for their size. If they weigh 20% more than they should then they are classed as obese. It can be hard to tell what their ideal weight should be, especially if they are a crossbreed so a body condition chart is a great guide to identify their weight.

Why is being overweight a problem?

Obesity has been linked to many health conditions such as heart disease and arthritis. Being overweight causes the heart to work harder and puts pressure on the joints causing extra pain in individuals already suffering arthritis. In dogs, studies have shown that being even moderately overweight can shorten their lifespan by up to 2 years and although there are no longevity studies in rabbits there is little doubt that obesity affects quality of life and more than likely lifespan too. There are many other issues associated with being overweight:

Overweight rabbits are more likely to suffer from pododermatitis (sore hocks), a painful condition of the feet.

Overweight rabbits cannot reach their anus to eat caecotrophs. If they cannot eat these ‘night faeces’ to get important nutrients they can develop life threatening digestive problems.

Overweight rabbits are more prone to developing cystitis and sludgy urine (Varga, 2014).

Pet obesity has been in the news quite a lot over the last couple of years with the most common figure being quoted of a third of UK pets are overweight. However, last year Marsden, supplier of veterinary weighing scales did their own survey of over 2500 vet practices and found that 58% of pets are overweight – more than half! Yet only 16% owners believe their pet is overweight (PDSA, 2016). One possible reason for the huge discrepancy between overweight pets and owners being able to identify weight problems is that there are now so many fat pets that we may have lost sight of what is ‘normal’.

The 2016 PDSA Animal Wellbeing Report highlighted many reasons that rabbits (and other pets could be overweight), for example owners tend to feed treats and extra food for a variety of reasons including to make up for feeling guilty for the lack of exercise their pet gets. The study also showed that many rabbit owners are still not feeding the recommended diet of 80% hay and grass, 15% greens and 5% dry food. Only 68% of owners feed hay and for many of these rabbits hay was not available 24 hours a day, as it should be. 24% owners were still feeding muesli style dry food which is generally lower in fibre and higher in calories than pellets and promotes selective feeding (rabbits tend to pick out the higher calorie bits like the flaked peas). Studies into rabbit nutrition support this claim that muesli should be avoided, for example Prebble et al (2014) found that rabbits fed ad-lib muesli food became obese when compared to rabbits fed muesli with hay, pellets with hay or just hay. The best body score was for the 4th group that were just fed hay but the study did not examine if the rabbits fed hay only suffered any nutrition deficiencies (Mancinelli, 2016).

Helping your rabbit lose weight

It can be difficult to get your rabbit to lose weight once they have put it on. However, fine-tuning the diet and encouraging exercise is the best way to do this. Keep in touch with your you vet or vet nurse so you can monitor progress and ensure the rate of weight loss is safe. Many practices now offer free weight clinics.

You can encourage exercise by:

Providing a run that is permanently attached to the hutch so your rabbit has access to it 24 hours a day.

Hide food around the run or hutch for your rabbit to forage for.

Hang food from the roof of the run or ceiling so your rabbit has to stretch to get it.

Use feeding toys or balls to encourage your rabbit to move and work for his/her food.

You can change the diet by:

Increasing the amount of hay you offer and cut down on the dry food.

Cut out the dry food completely if you are able to and instead offer a variety of vegetables/herbs or wild plants daily to ensure your rabbit is getting a balanced diet.

This blog is a little late in the year as usually I would suggest collecting plants before the autumn starts when wild foliage is most abundant and high in nutrients. However, there are still several plants available, including plantain, that you could gather for drying and feeding during the winter.

The ideal rabbit diet consists of approximately 80% hay & grass, 15% greens (this can be vegetables, wild plants or herbs) and 5 % dry food (i.e. pellets). I have personally found that feeding wild plants to my rabbits instead of cultivated vegetables such as spring greens, cabbage, broccoli etc. suits their digestive system better, but it is far more difficult to forage in the winter due to the lack of vegetation. By drying weeds and herbs you can continue to feed natural, wild plants throughout the winter.

Herbs and wild plants that air dry best are the ones with a low moisture content such as rosemary, thyme, oregano and sage. Wild plants such as ribwort plantain, blackberry (brambles), goose grass and even nettles can be dried quite easily. Below is a photo of some plantain and yarrow hanging from the roof of my rabbit shed.

How to dry plants:

Step 1. Pick your herbs or wild plants (forage) when they are dry. So ideally after a couple of dry days and after any morning dew has evaporated. Wet herbs & plants are more likely to go mouldy.

Step 2. Remove any insects!

Step 3. Sort into bunches of 5-10 stems and tie the ends together with string.

Step 4. Hang upside down in a warm, well ventilated area with plenty of air flow and allow to dry. A warm shed is ideal. You can also spread your forage out along wooden shelves to dry.

Step 5. Check (and turn if using a drying shelf) your forage frequently and remove any parts with signs of mould.

Step 6. It may take several days for your forage to be completely dry. Once dry, seal in air tight bags or containers.

Step 7. When opening your container check visually for any signs of mould or insect infestation. Do not feed if you spot mould or the forage smells musty.

By drying plants you can supply your rabbits or guinea pigs with tasty, healthy food throughout winter.

Apparently, there is a heat wave coming to the UK next week. The forecasts are estimating that it will be as high as 30 degrees C… for at least a day anyway!

I’m making sure I’m prepared for the hot weather so that my rabbits, Dobby and Hazel can keep as cool and comfortable as possible.

In the wild, the underground burrows that rabbits live in stay at a fairly constant temperature, remaining cool in the summer, warm in the winter and free of draughts. However, above ground rabbits are exposed to much larger fluctuations in temperature and they can struggle to tolerate hot weather.

Rabbits cannot sweat or pant to lose weight like humans and other animals. Instead, they use their large ears to dissipate heat.

There are several ways you can keep your rabbits cool:

It sounds obvious but make sure you provide plenty of shade and ensure that as the sun moves there will be shade no matter what time of day it is. I use old linen sheets or old shower curtains but parasols and boxes or hiding places inside the run would also be suitable. It’s important that you don’t restrict airflow to the run or hutch when you put up sheets for shade.

Keep your rabbits well groomed. A thick coat will help them retain heat, furthermore brushing out dead hair and making sure that there are no mats in the coat helps air flow to circulate around the skin.

Hutches can get very hot. Sadly, earlier this year there were reports of guinea pigs and rabbits dying in their hutches due to the heat. These hutches had their waterproof covers over them, reducing ventilation and trapping heat like a greenhouse. Move hutches into the shade and remove plastic covers to increase air flow.

I encourage water consumption by offering foods with a higher liquid content such as cucumber. You can also spray their veggies/greens with cool water before feeding too.

Get with the science and try evaporative cooling! In humans, we keep cool as our sweat evaporates. This is because heat is used to turn water (sweat) from liquid into water vapour. You can use a cool damp cloth or plant mist sprayer (previously unused, you don’t want any chemical residue) to wet your rabbit’s ears. As the water on the ears evaporates it will help cool them down.

Use an electric fan. Don’t have the fan so it’s blowing right at your rabbit but improving airflow in the general area your rabbit lives in can help keep them cool. Some people use a fan in conjunction with cold wet towels draped over the run. The idea is that the fan blows the towels and as the water evaporates from the towels it helps the air stay cool. I’ve never used this method personally but if you decide to try it, make sure any electrical cords are kept out of the way or are safe from being chewed.

I do however, have two of these Scratch & Newton Ice pods. Freeze them overnight then put them in with your rabbit for them to lie on or near, to keep them cool. As an alternative you can fill 2 litre plastic bottles with water and freeze them. Wrap in an old pillow case and pop them in your rabbit run for them to lie against.

Another recommendation is to freeze an old ceramic wall or floor tile for them to lie on.

My final tip is to offer a digging pit/box. Rabbits like to burrow but this is not usually practical for most owners. However, Dobby and Hazel like to lie on bare earth. They scrape away the warm top soil and lie on the cooler earth below. Providing a box or tray of soil will give them somewhere to dig, and like my rabbits they may like to lie in the cooler earth.

Hopefully, these tips will help you keep your rabbits nice and cool. However, below are the signs of heat stroke. If you suspect heat stroke you should contact your vet immediately. Whilst contacting the vet try to reduce the rabbit’s body temperature by wetting the ears or body in cool (not cold) water and get them into the shade. Do not submerge your rabbit in cold or freezing water as they may go into shock. An electric fan (again not pointed directly in their face) can help increase air flow to help cool the environment down.